Why adopt? Short answer: Millons of orphans. We wanted kids; there were kids in the world who needed families. Long answer here.

Why Eastern Europe? Again, millions of orphans. Need I say more? Honestly, we just felt drawn to Ukraine. Unfortunately, due to some changes in Ukrainian adoption law, we would not be able to adopt a child who was younger than Reed and Lena for our second adoption. But, we chose a country with a somewhat similar process and a similar culture for our second adoption.

Why not domestic adoption? International adoption is the best fit for our family. If you are passionate about domestic adoption, by all means, adopt domestically. I am passionate about adoption everywhere and at this time, adoption from Eastern Europe is the best fit.

Aren’t you young to adopt? Yes, we are. But, we have clearly proven to a lot of people that we are capable parents.

Are your kids siblings? Reed and Lena are not biological siblings. However, they are siblings, real siblings.

Where does all the money go? A lot of different places. Homestudy agency, Adoption agency, USCIS, Airlines, Hotel or apartment, Visas (for the kids AND us, depending on the country), and some other places.

Where did you get all the money? Our own savings. Very wonderful people who donated money to our Reece’s Rainbow account or gifted us money. Grants. Fundraisers. We’ve looked into lots of options. What worked for us won’t necessarily work for you. But, if you are financially prepared to care for a child, but do not have the $20,000-$30,000 in savings, there are ways to make it happen. There are also some adoption opportunities where a particular child has a large grant. Reece’s Rainbow, Project Hopeful and the Eli Project are places to check.

Do any of your children have special needs?  We have a policy not to discuss medical information (among other things) on our blog. However, I have many friends who parent children with special needs and if you have questions about any special need, or how to get plugged in, please contact me privately and I will try to find someone who can help you.

What else do you want to know? Leave a question below and I’m happy to respond.